Bringing Process Maturity to an R&D Culture - Integrating CMMI and Agile Development - page 188

mechanism. One of the most effective mechanisms I have observed is
referred to in many organizations as Gates .
7.32 An Option to Help Achieve GP 2.8 Through Gates
At GEAR, I heard that the Project Kickoff process was very good, but that
sometimes it didn't happen. I also heard that how good the Project Kickoff
was when it did happen depended on “who happened to show up.”
One technique I have observed organizations using to address these kinds of
issues is referred to as Gates . Gates are key checkpoints on a project that are
usually instituted outside each specific Engineering department, but inside
Engineering and Project Management and Support Operations as a whole.
There is an important distinction between Gates and what a Quality organiza-
tion does. Gates are a mechanism for an organization to monitor and control
itself by having a level of checks inside its own organization without relying
on the sampling checks from an independent Quality Group.
Gates are usually instituted in a collaborative way by Engineering and Project
Management working together to ensure all project requirements to proceed
from a given project milestone have been met. They have a cross-functional
focus to counter the natural tendency of functional groups to focus inward.
Gates are not required by the CMMI. They are a proven “how-to” mechanism
that can assist achieving the intent of GP 2.8. Depending on the culture in
your organization, it is also possible to integrate Gates with Quality Compli-
ance Checks.
7.33 “How to” Options to Implement PPQA
Organizations have available to them multiple options to achieve the intent
of the PPQA Process Area. Most often, the intent is achieved through a dis-
tinct group that reports to Senior Management independent of engineering.
Often the culture that results from such an “independent” group is one of an
external “police force” whose job it is to “enforce” process compliance.
I have observed an alternative implementation that resulted in the growth of
an effective quality culture within an Agile organization, and provided some
unanticipated side benefits. This occurred at BOND.